Over 326,000 people affected in north China rainstorm

 TAIYUAN, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- More than 326,000 people have been affected¹ after heavy rain battered² a county in Lvliang city, in north China's Shanxi province, local authorities said Wednesday.

Torrential rains lashed³ 512 villages of Linxian county last Thursday and Friday, according to the county's information office.

As of Wednesday, eight people had been confirmed dead and two remained missing. Twenty-two others were injured in the rain-triggered floods.

Severe rainfalls also damaged roads, bridges and telecommunications facilities. The direct losses were estimated at 1.3 billion yuan (204.1 million U.S. dollars).

Local governments have sent work teams for the relief works and rescuers to repair the damaged roads and restoring electricity in some areas.

The provincial⁴ meteorological station issued the red rainstorm alert Tuesday to warn of more heavy rains that are expected to hit four cities in the southern part of the province from Tuesday to Wednesday.

Chinese meteorological authorities use a four-tier color-coded weather warning system, with red being the most severe, followed by orange, yellow and blue.

1 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

2 battered   

adj.磨损的；v.连续猛击；磨损

参考例句：

• He drove up in a battered old car.他开着一辆又老又破的旧车。
• The world was brutally battered but it survived.这个世界遭受了惨重的创伤,但它还是生存下来了。

3 lashed   

adj.具睫毛的v.鞭打( lash的过去式和过去分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥

参考例句：

• The rain lashed at the windows. 雨点猛烈地打在窗户上。
• The cleverly designed speech lashed the audience into a frenzy. 这篇精心设计的演说煽动听众使他们发狂。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。